February 16, 2001 9:35: CASH raised from speeding drivers caught on cameras has helped cut down on traffic accidents

Serious casualties went down seven per cent in the first nine months of the Safer Roads Campaign, which began last April in Thames Valley.

There were five per cent less collisions overall, compared to the same period in 1999.

The Safer Roads Campaign aims to reduce the number of casualties on the roads by increasing speed enforcement and educating drivers about the dangers of inappropriate speed.

It is funded through roadside cameras, with money from fixed penalty tickets invested in safety measures.

This has helped speed-related crashes and injuries fall by 6.6 per cent on roads in Buckinghamshire, Berkshire and Oxfordshire.

But the number of people killed in collisions overall has risen from 128 to 135.

Insp Malcolm Collis, who heads the Safer Roads Campaign, said: "The fact that more people are dying in collisions is proof that there is still a lot more work to be done."

He added: "Even though there have been reductions in collisions overall and reductions in speed-related deaths, we still need drivers to play their part in the campaign for safer roads.

"We all must continue to drive responsibly to ensure casualties are reduced even further."

The Safer Roads Partnership, which includes police, local highways authorities, magistrates courts and the Crown Prosecution Service, was chosen by the Government to run a two-year campaign as part of a pilot project.